US Makes Big Strides in Reducing Domestic Violence

The rate of partner-to-partner violence dropped by a stunning 64 percent between 1994 and 2010, a recent Justice Department report has found. The trend, almost unnoticed, stems from a broad shift in attitude toward domestic violence.

Many in the field credit the public awareness campaigns, national legislation protecting victims, and subsequent training of police and prosecutors to recognize intimate partner violence as a crime, rather than as a private matter.